Hammer flue-cleaner



(No Model.) W.- H. TEBEAU.

HAMMER FLUE CLEANER.

Patented May 28, 1895.

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM H. TEBEAU, OF SYRACUSE, NEW YORK.

HAMMER FLuE-CLANER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 540,081, dated May 28,1895.

Application filed October 12, 1894. Serial No. 525,737. (No model.)

To all whom t may con/cern:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM H. TEEEAU, a citizen of the United States,residing at Syracuse, in the county of Onondaga and State of New York,have invented certain new and usefullmprovements in HammerFlue-Cleaners; and I do hereby declare the following to beafull, clear,and exact description of the invention, such as will enable othersskilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same,reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure l isa conjoint side and sectional longitudinal elevation of my hammerfluecleaner as disposed in operative position for the removal of scale,tbc., from a tube or flue of a steamboiler, which representation is, byreason of the lengthiness of the device in comparison to its diameter orwidth, delineated in broken lengths or sections to permit of theillustration of its construction on a satisfactory scale; Fig. 2, atransverse section taken upon dotted line a: as, Fig. 1, and lookingtoward the external disk-like face of the en` the drawings.

The object of my invention is, the production of a tool of novel,useful, and eective construction peculiarly adapted for the removal ofscale from boiler tubes or fines while the same are in position withinthe boiler.

For the attainment thereof my invention consists in the novel featuresof construction, arrangement, operation and adaptation hereinafterdescribed, and specifically enumerated in the annexed claims.

Referring to the accompanying drawings illustrative of my hammer{lue-cleaner, A denotes the open cylindrical body whereto is pivoted thehammer arm or lever B; said body being somewhat elongated lengthwise,and comprising the circular or disk-like heads 1, 2, connected bylongitudinal bars a, a, a', disposed about the periphery substantiallyequi-distant apart, thereby creating between them elongated openings b,b, b; which bars, of segment shape in cross-section, are so dispassesand is there journaled the lengthy hammer arm or lever B before referredto; apivotpin d standing across the opening and penetrating the head ateither side suitably supporting the swinging hammer arm. The exceedinglylengthy portion of the hammer arm extending taperingly forward from thefront head 1 of the body terminates ina hammer e,

preferably of semi-globular shape, and leaving upwardly a straight orslightly rounded edge, practically lineal with the upper straight edgeof the arm or lever whereof it is an integral part. The much shorterrearwardly extended portion of the hammer-arm gradually tapers towardits end and there terminating in the tipf having a lower straight edge.By preference the sides of the horizontally extended hammer-arm areflat, and in. crosssection said arm is of substantially uniformthickness.

C represents the actuating spring (in a certain direction) of the hammermember, said elongated spring plate being firmly secured at its butt endto the interior of the body A by means of bolts g connecting same to theinnerface of the lower located bar portion a of said body, from whence,extending slightly curvilinear, it passes out through the head 1 bymeans of thehorizontal lower opening h therein, and continues, graduallydecreasing in thickness, forwardly outward some c0nsiderable distance,its extremity abutting the under edge of the hammer arm or levercontiguous the protuberance constituting the hammer, which springplateof steel is, by choice, of a width much greater than that of thehammer-arm it operates upon; and, re ferring to said arm, I lind itadvisable in order to attain essential sweep and stroke thereot' Withinthe circumscribed limits ot' its action, that its forward portionextending longitudinally out from the body A should be about double thelength of the rear portion lying within said body. l

IOO l Passing centrally through the head portion 2 and the rearwardlyprotruding neck or boss 3 thereof is a cylindrical shaft or rod D, theforward extremity whereof stands out a moderate degree from the innerdisk-like face of aforementioned rear head of the body A, and upon saidoutstanding end there is keyed a cam E, preferably a double cam asillustrated, although, if desired, obviously a single cam with onecurvilinear actuating portion in lieu of the two wing-members formingthe double cam, may be employed.

Normally the tipfof the ham mer-arm bears lightly upon a central portionof the cams edge substantially midway its extended portions, the hammerarm and hammer practically occupying the position shown in the drawings.However, if the cam is so turned as to impel the tip end outwardevidently there would be a change in position of the hammer arm andhammer.

The rotating shaft D actuating the cam E extends horizontally rearwardfrom the body7 A some considerable distance-in fact is sufficientlyelongated to insure of a mode-rate portion of the rear termination lyingoutside the front end of a boiler tube when my tool is so disposed withrelation to the tube as to admit of its hammer operating at the farthestextremity thereof.

F, F, denote lengths or sections of pipes inclosing in non-contact theshaft D from where it enters the neck 3 of the body to a pointinvariably located slightly beyond the fro-nt end of the boiler tubebeing operated on by my flue cleaning tool preferably connected lengthsof gas pipe being utilized; say one length to start with, and furtherlengths being added thereto from time to time as the shaft, body,hammer, &c., penetrates rearwardly from the front of the liue or tubebeing operated on.

The end of the neck or boss 3 of the body A is threaded, as are also theends of the p-i-pe length or lengths F; which pipes are respectivelyunited together by interiorly threaded couplings 4, one of which unitesthe threaded neck 3 of the body A to the contiguous pipe length.

Screwed to the outer end of the outermost pipe Fis a cap 5 having acircular central opening through which passes loosely the hammeroperating-shaft D.

Secured to the outer length of pipe F between the contiguous end of theflue or tube of the boiler and the cap 5 is a doublehandled clip-bar G,the segment-like shaft inclosing parts of the two handle members t', t",overlapping at the 'sides of said shaft and connected together-the twoparts-by bolts k, k; said clip portion being so firmly secured to theperiphery of the pipe F that a thorough grasp is attained.

The manipulating bar G is calculated, when properly manipulated in thehands of an operator, to rotate or turn the united pipe lengths F andforward body A and operative 'firmly to the shaft D.

mechanism thereat within the interior of the boiler tlue, as desired.

Removably hung upon the shaft D Just outside of the cap 5 terminatingthe outward projection of the pipe length F, there is a skeleton frame Hof practically the shape shown, and terminating at its inner loweroorner in horizontal handle J adaptable for grasping by a persons hand.This vertically supported frame H, of rectangular shape in s ideelevation, is provided at its upper portion with circular apertures Z,Z, formed lineally in the front and rear uprights of the skeleton frame,and the shaft D extending through them proper supporting of said frameis accomplished.

The apertures Z, Z, are of sufficiently greater diameter than the shaftD as to permit of the ready sliding along the shaft, as required, of theframe H, as well as insuring such freedom that the rotation of saidshaft will not effect the position of the frame normally remainingvertical.

Within the frame H, and standing centrally and transversely to theshaft, are two gears, meshing one with the other, the small upper one Lbeing mounted longitudinally movable on the hammer operating shaft D,while the underneath large gear M is mounted on a shaft 6 supported bybearings in the frame, to the outer or forward end there being securedan operating handle bar N having a handle 7, by the turning whereof thelarge gear revolves imparting motion to the small companion gear and theshaft D whereto it is secured.

The hub of the upper gear L is provided with a set-screw m for securingthe gear To permit of the sliding of the frame H forward or rearwardalong said shaft and concurrently its gearing, all that is requisite isthe loosening of the setscrew m of the hub olf the small gear fromimpingement with the shaft D; the frame then being slid along to desiredlocation on the shaft and the set-screw tightened, again securing saidgear thereto in operative relation. The large gear is secured firmly toits gudgeon by a set-screw (or spline) n.

P indicates (by dotted work) a section of the flue or tube of a boiler,and is shown for exemplifyingwith exceeding clearness the application ofmy tool (or machine) for the purposes it is particularly designed andadapted for. f

By the turning of the handle 7 rotation is, through the intermediatemeans, imparted to the .cam E in the body A, the cam by its action onthe arm or lever of the hammer intermittently impelling the hammertoward that side of the inner periphery of the boiler tine lyingantagonistic to the normal position delineated in the drawings, thehammer arm in said travel crowding against and impelling thespri-ng-plate C in the direction said arm is moving, and then as quicklyas the tip end of the arm is freed from and clears a pro IIO IZO

tuberant pressing part of the cam, thespringplate flies back to itsnormal attitude carrying with rapidity in like direction the hammer-armand hammer, the sharp and sudden impact of the hammer against thecontiguous inner surface of the boiler ilue causing through theconcussion resultant the loosening and dislodgement of the scale on theoutside ofthe flue at and adjacent where the blow or blows were struckinteriorly. From time to time during the penetration of the strikinghammer, dac., along the interior of the flue, the proper extension ofthe pipe or sleeve F is attained by the adding of requisite lengths.

To change circumferentially the position of the hammer within the boilerIlue,the united pipe sections F are turned, as desirable, :throughproper working by the hands of the clip-bar G. t

Evidently, as the actuating rod 'D gradually penetrates farther andfarther into the boiler Iiue or tube it is essential that from time totime the sliding frame H with its gearing should be moved varyingdegrees alongl the shaft D inthe direction of its outer end.

The purpose of the handle J of the frame is, through retention by anoperators hand, to insure proper upholding and steadying of both shaftand other parts, and particularly the steadying of the frame H andthrowing sameinto varying inclinations with respect to its cylindricalsupport D.

The practically incessant rapping upon the interior surface of a boilerflue through the hammer blows causes such jarring and vibration of themetal as to invariably loosen the scale adhering to the exterior of theflue, which scale dropping to the bottom of the boiler is readilyremoved by means of access thereto through the hand-holes of the boiler.That concurrently it clears the soot from the interior of the tubes orIlues operated on is obvious. D

Through the employment of my tool (or machine) which absolutely clearsthe tlues from scale while they are in position within the boiler, animportant and advantageous result is attained, my invention obviatingthe necessity of employing non-satisfactory compounds for intendedremoval of scale or prevention of its formation, or the crude means nowusually employed for removing scale mechanically, t'. e., removal of thetubes from the boiler, then rapping them with ahammer, and replacingsame in position again by the welding of the tube ends and resetting inthe boiler, all a matter of annoyance and expense.

That the use of my device will necessarily insure a direct saving offuel from the fact that its employment twice or thrice a year for theremoval of scale from the tubes is suf` icient, may readily beunderstood.

Having thus fully described my invention, what I claim as new, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, is- A 1. In a flue-cleaning machineadapted for operating on a tube or tubes disposed within a steam boiler,a hammer operating mechanism, an advance body whereto the hammer arm ispivoted, an elongated shaft working a member adapted to carry the hammerin one direction, a tubing loosely encompassing the shaft aforesaid, andsuitable means for rotating exteriorly of the boiler the shaft working aportion of the hammer actuating mechanism, substantially as described.

2. A boiler flue-cleaning device adapted by `hammer-blows to remove thescale from

